Qualla: This Pride of Java

This Pride of Java: Introduction

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, who governed Java for the British Crown from 1811 to 1816, was not a man given to understatement. But when he stumbled upon the scattered ruins near Mojokerto, half-swallowed by dense teak forest, even he could only call it "this pride of Java." The ruins stretched for miles in every direction: temple foundations, brick walls, carved gateways. Raffles could not have known their full extent. Today archaeologists estimate that Trowulan, the probable capital of the Majapahit Empire, covered approximately 100 square kilometers, making it one of the largest urban complexes in the medieval world. Submitted to UNESCO's World Heritage tentative list in 2009, the site continues to yield secrets buried under centuries of volcanic mud from nearby Mount Kelud and periodic flooding from the Brantas River.

Read more: This Pride of Java on Qualla

This Pride of Java: The Poet's Palace

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Almost everything known about Trowulan at its height comes from two sources: a Javanese poem and a Chinese traveler's account. The Nagarakretagama, composed in 1365 by the court poet Mpu Prapanca, describes a royal compound surrounded by thick, high walls of red brick. Huge doors...

Read more: This Pride of Java on Qualla

This Pride of Java: Gates That Split the Sky

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Two gateways survive at Trowulan, and each tells a different story. The Bajang Ratu is a paduraksa gate, an enclosed archway that rises 16.5 meters in a slender, elegant profile adorned with bas-reliefs depicting scenes from the Sri Tanjung legend and the Ramayana. Folk tradition...

Read more: This Pride of Java on Qualla

This Pride of Java: The Rat Temple and the Miniature Sea

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Trowulan's archaeological sites resist easy categorization. Tikus Temple, discovered in 1914, earned its name because the excavation initially resembled a rat-breeding enclosure. Restored in 1985 and 1989, the site turned out to be a petirtaan, a ritual bathing pool, its principa...

Read more: This Pride of Java on Qualla

This Pride of Java: Gold, Clay, and Chinese Coins

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT

The ruins at Trowulan reveal not just a political capital but an industrial city. One hamlet is still called Kemasan, from the Javanese word mas, meaning gold. Goldsmiths worked imported gold from Sumatra, Borneo, and Sulawesi using lost-wax casting techniques, and their tools ha...

Read more: This Pride of Java on Qualla

This Pride of Java: Between Preservation and Disappearance

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Trowulan's greatest threat has always been its own ground. Much of the ancient city lies buried under meters of mud and volcanic debris deposited by eruptions of Mount Kelud and flooding from the Brantas River. Excavations have revealed two and sometimes three layers of dwellings...

Read more: This Pride of Java on Qualla